Can someone tell me the model number and when it was made . The numberes I find are on the butt #5712 , and when you open the cylinder # 14260
Thanks for you help Robert in Ga.

There were no model numbers before 1957, and this sounds like it would be way older than that.

A picture would help. If you can't post one, please give us a little more information.

Does this gun have a swing-out cylinder, or does the barrel pivot down to eject empties and permit reloading? If the latter, does it have an exposed or a concealed hammer?

How long is the barrel, measuring from the face of the cylinder to the muzzle?

There should be a block of patent numbers stamped on the top of the barrel. What is the last one?

We can help you identify this revolver; we just need a little more info.

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David Wilson

Sorry I have no way to take pics.
Smith & Wesson .32 long ,6" barnel , swing-out cylinder , round butt grips. No patent number just dates
July 1 .84 ,may 1 .95, July 16 .95 ,Aug. 4 .96 ,dec. 22 .96 ,Out. 4 .98
Thanks for your help Robert

Sorry, I should have said "dates," not "numbers."

Well, that's an interesting gun. Until you got to the list of dates it sounded to me like either First or Second model .32 Hand Ejector; the company restarted the serial numbers between these two models, so there were several similar guns with identical serial numbers. Either way, it would date from 1903 or before.

But the patent date series you mention is the date set that appeared on the earliest K-frame revolvers, which were slightly larger. There was a .32 caliber revolver in this class, but it was the .32 Winchester Center Fire (WCF) or .32-20. A very few early K-frames in .32 Long are known, but they are extremely uncommon. And I do not know of an early K-frame with a barrel less than four inches long.

Because of the three-inch barrel (which I suspect is actually a 3.25" barrel if you measure it closely), I think this is an I-frame revolver, which most .32 Long revolvers of the hand ejector design were. In that case it was simply rollmarked with a non-standard die at the factory.

One more question: does the ejector rod under the barrel hang there unsupported at the front end, or is there a lug attached to the barrel with an internal pin that locks into the front of the ejector rod when the cylinder is closed? No lug means first model, presence of a lug means second model.

The patent date info I reference here comes from Smith & Wesson: 1857-1945, by Neal and Jinks.

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David Wilson

It is a 6 " barnell not a 3.25"

Sounds like an I-frame, not a K-frame. What is the caliber roll-marking that should
be on the side of the barrel ? I assume its 32 S&W Long, and not 32 WCF ? And
finally, how many chambers does the cylinder have ? 5 or 6 ?

Mike Priwer

Right. I don't know why I read 3". I may have had the number stuck in my head from a different thread.

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David Wilson

Thanks to all for your help. I think it is a Smith & Wesson copy

Do you still have this revolver?